The game of basketball is a game that is played and practiced in numerous locations throughout the world. The long standing worldwide nature of the sport is evidenced by the adoption of basketball as an Olympic sport in the 1930's. The game can be practiced or played by individuals or by individuals organized, formally or informally, into teams. Across the globe, a multitude of both professional and non-professional basketball teams and leagues exist. When being practiced or played by individuals, or in teams, the game of basketball can offer a means of recreation, personal challenge and entertainment for participants. As a spectator sport, the game is a source of entertainment for people in a myriad of venues across the globe, e.g. gymnasiums, public streets, private driveways, recreational facilities, college or professional sports venues, etc. The game can be practiced, played or enjoyed almost anywhere. For those who practice at refining their basketball skills, such as improving shooting techniques, or executing basketball plays, alone or in groups, an inordinate amount of time and energy can be expended on an activity wholly unrelated to improving player skill. The unfruitful, time consuming activity is the collection and return of basketballs to players at desired positions on the playing court or surface. This non-productive activity can waste significant player time and energy and substantially impairs the rate at which those desiring to become more proficient at the game improve.
Prior U.S. Pat. No. 6,241,628, that issued on Jun. 5, 2001, to present inventor Jenkins, et al. discloses a collapsible collecting net and ball projecting mechanism that is utilized to collect basketballs and return them to users of the device. The device provides a means for collecting and delivering basketballs to players. While the disclosed device was a measured advancement in the art, additional problems in the art remained.
Some of the problems that remained unresolved in the art included: the effective management of ball collection and return, an effective means of collecting and managing user information, providing users of such devices with useful feedback information, keeping users entertained, and enabling such devices to be utilized in a host of lighting environments. It is the goal of the present disclosure to solve these and other problems.